A few years ago I transformed a cluttered small coat closet into functional DIY mudroom lockers. I was tired of backpacks, coats, shoes and all of my kids stuff scattered throughout the house. Our mudroom coming in from the garage and leading to the kitchen and laundry room is a very small space.
The only way I could achieve the gorgeous mudroom lockers so many modern homes have today, was by tearing out the coat/catch-all closet and replacing it with my vision of the perfect space: mudroom lockers and a bench.
So, in “Nicole fashion”, I tore out the wall and went to work. When I have an idea, I usually give it a little processing time (very little :) ) and then jump in with two feet. My DIY projects motto: if I mess it up too badly, I have a good handyman I can call. :)
This jumping in a little too quickly, can cause some regrets down the road. And with this mudroom, I have one regret I’ll be sharing with you in just a bit. But first let’s look at the original layout of the mudroom lockers and how I built them….
Step One: Removing this closet…
Having never tried my hand at drywall, I decided to hire this one out. So as not to accrue too much extra cost, I decided to do a lot of the prep work myself. Therefore, my handyman only had to charge me for tearing out the closet door frame.
My part was very easy:
- Tear out all of the shelving
- Remove the doors
- Tear off all of the trim
Easy How to DIY Mudroom Lockers
Once my handyman got rid of the rest of the closet, I was ready to get to work!
I was amazed by how much extra mudroom space opening up this closet area gave us.
Opening up this small space made a huge difference.
Wood Needed for DIY Mudroom Lockers:
Room dimensions vary, therefore, I am only providing the type of wood I used…
- 3/4″ 4ft x 8ft sanded plywood sheet (birch is another option, but will be more expensive)
- 2x6x8 pine boards (for bench top and top shelf)
Essential Materials Needed:
- Nail gun nails
- Wood screws
Essential Tools Needed:
Design and Dimensions:
There were four functions I wanted my DIY mudroom lockers to serve:
- room for my three school-aged kiddos to store all of their stuff (book bags, winter coats, sports paraphernalia)
- cubbies for hats, gloves, scarves, snow boots, etc in the winter and beach towels, pool bags in the summer
- baskets for extra storage
- a dedicated spot for all the floor tools (vacuum, broom, mop).
Determining what functions you want your mudroom lockers to serve, will help you come up with the best design to fit your family’s needs.
It’s not a bad idea to check out mudroom ideas on Pinterest before getting started.
Once I had the optimal functionality narrowed down, I was ready to start the process.
First step was measuring my space and drawing out the design on paper. My ultimate goal was to achieve a custom built-in mudroom locker look. Therefore, I designed these lockers to fit snug in the space with lots of finishing trim to fill any gaps.
I determined I wanted three lockers with
- coat hooks
- a deep built-in bench for comfortable seating
- 3 cubbies
- a shelf on top to hold multiple baskets
- a large open space for all the floor tools.
Prepare the Space for DIY Mudroom Lockers:
Before starting the building process, the first thing you’ll want to do is remove any carpet and baseboards/trim. Giving yourself a clean space will make the process go much smoother.
Build the Cubbies/Base:
I cut my 3/4″ plywood to the dimensions needed to create my base.
Starting with my end vertical board (shown in the picture below: the vertical board on the far right), I then attached the long bottom board, using 1 1/4″ pocket hole screws.
Working against gravity, I propped this long board up with some scrap pieces. This made attaching it to my vertical end board much easier.
I attached my bottom shelf board to my vertical board about 3 1/2″ up from the bottom of the vertical board. My reason for this is, that I wanted to add a trim piece across the bottom of my cubbies space.
Next, I was ready to start adding my cubby dividers. As shown in the picture above, I used pocket holes to attach each of these dividers to my long bottom shelf board.
After assembling this part in my garage, I then brought the base into my mudroom and placed it in the open space….
Note: Now would be a good time to paint the inside of your cubbies. This is definitely a live-and-learn lesson. Much easier to paint them now when they’re open and accessible than when there’s a bench on top and you have to crawl into them. :( Learn from my mistakes. Haha!! :)
Attach the Mudroom Bench:
I used my miter saw to cut my bench boards. Using 2x6s, I cut them to fit and attached each board with my nail gun….
As you can see in the picture below, I did not extend the bench all the way to the opposite wall. This open space will be for all of my floor tools….
Build the Lockers:
And here’s my big mistake. Adding shiplap to the walls before finishing the DIY mudroom lockers. If I could do it over again, I would add the shiplap last.
Here we are, four years later, and I would love to remove this horizontal shiplap and add vertical shiplap instead.
But with all of these boards behind my lockers, removing them would not be an easy task. Another live and learn lesson. So, I advise you to wait til the end of the project to add any accent wall feature you may want to install.
With this much of the project already done, I could already see plenty of storage space.
Being the visual person I am, I used scrap wood to determine where I wanted each locker….
Once again, I constructed the lockers in my garage and then brought them into the mudroom.
I cut my 3/4″ plywood as needed for each divider.
Then I drilled 3/4″ pocket holes on the end of each divider.
I then attached a perpendicular board for my top shelf base, using 1 1/4″ pocket hole screws.
Once I brought the lockers inside and set them in place, I attached them to my bench using 1 1/4″ pocket hole screws…
Add the Finish Trim to DIY Mudroom Lockers:
I used MDF strips to finish all of my rough edges. Plywood is made up of several boards pressed together. So, when it is cut, you’re left with the unsightly view of rough edges.
Edge-banding is a great way to cover this up….especially when building furniture. However, I wanted something a little more substantial.
Therefore, strips of MDF board, cut to fit, were a very good option and provided that finished, cleaner look I was going for.
You can see in the picture below, how I trimmed out each locker. I used 1×2 pine wood to create a framed border inside each locker space.
I also added a 1×5 pine wood board, spanning the full length of the wall, to be able to attach coat hooks. You can see I cut individual 1x5s for each of my coat hook horizontal boards…
Ready for Paint and Stain:
Before painting and staining, I had one more step: adding the top shelf boards. I decided to use 2x’s to match the bench seat.
I simply attached these boards with my nail gun and added brackets on the far right side for extra support.
Now, I was ready to paint and stain. Staining the bench and top shelf first, I used Jacobean wood stain.
After those boards were dry, I taped them off and painted the rest of the DIY mudroom lockers with Behr Marquee White Moderne in a semi-gloss finish. (This is my go-to white paint). To finish it all off, I added my hooks…
That was Then This is Now:
I loved my new DIY mudroom lockers back in 2018…
But that was then and this is now. As is the case with most people, my tastes have changed and I am now loving a more simplistic, minimalist look.
This past winter, I gave my 2018 DIY mudroom lockers a bit of a makeover. I gave them a new coat of paint. A darker, moodier blackish-blue color (Naval by Sherwin Williams).
Check out where I used the leftover paint, in this post!
In addition, I sanded down the bench and top shelf and stained them a much lighter color…
I also spray-painted the crates and the hardware a Champagne Bronze color. My plan is to take down that light and spray paint it Champagne Bronze too. Or possibly replace it altogether.
But for now, I am loving this mudroom makeover. This lighter and airier feel is definitely the vibe I was going for…
All in all, this entire space took me about 4 days to complete. What was once a little room is now the perfect place for my kids to each have their own dedicated space.
I hope you found this mudroom locker plans post to be helpful. As always, let me know if you have any questions. I love helping you turn these DIY posts into something tangible. You never know what you’re capable of until you try! You’ve got this!
Designer Tip: When It Might Be Time to Bring in Help
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Until next week,
Happy Building, Friend!!
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